Carl Vilhelm Holsøe (

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

, 12 March 1863 – Asserbo, 7 November 1935) was a Danish artist who primarily painted interiors.

Life and career

Holsøe was born in

. His father was the architect N.P.C. Holsøe; his younger brother Niels Holsøe was also a painter. He studied at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

in Copenhagen in 1882–84 and then at the

Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler was an art school established in Copenhagen in 1882 as a protest against the policies of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and to provide an alternative to its educational program. It existed until 1912 and was a ...

under

Peder Severin Krøyer Peder Severin Krøyer (; 23 July 1851 – 21 November 1909), also known as P. S. Krøyer, was a Danish painter. Life Growing up and early training Krøyer was born in Stavanger, Norway, on 23 July 1851 to a single mother, Ellen Cecilie Gjes ...

.Vera Rasmussen
"Carl Holsøe"
''

Weilbachs Kunstnerleksikon ''Weilbachs Kunstnerleksikon'' (English: ''Weilbach's Biographical Dictionary of Artists'') is a Danish biographical dictionary A biographical dictionary is a type of encyclopedic dictionary limited to biographical information. Many attempt to ...

'', 4th ed. online (1994), .Merete Bodelsen
"Carl Holsøe"
''

Dansk Biografisk Leksikon ''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon'' (usually abbreviated DBL; title of first edition written ''Dansk biografisk Lexikon'') is a Danish biographical dictionary that has been published in three editions. The first edition, ''Dansk biografisk Lexikon, til ...

'', 3rd ed. (1979–84), online at ''

Den Store Danske Den may refer to: * Den (room), a small room in a house * Maternity den, a lair where an animal gives birth Media and entertainment * ''Den'' (album), 2012, by Kreidler * Den (''Battle Angel Alita''), a character in the ''Battle Angel Alita'' ...

'',
archived
at the

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

, 17 December 2012. He received several stipends from the academy, in one instance visiting Italy in 1897. He made his début at the 1886 Charlottenborg December Exhibition with ''Interior'', which

Karl Madsen Carl Johan Wilhelm Madsen, commonly known as Karl Madsen, (22 March 1855 – 16 April 1938) was a Danish painter and art historian with close connections to the Skagen Painters. Early life and education Born in Copenhagen on 22 March 1855, Mad ...

described as "hav ngalmost the character of a manifesto". From 1888 to 1910 and from 1922 to 1933 he showed works in the

Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition The Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition (''Charlottenborg Forårsudstilling'') is an annual art exhibition in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. The event is held at the Charlottenborg Exhibition Building (''Kunsthal Charlottenborg''). Kunsthal Cha ...

, and in 1909 and 1914 in the Autumn Exhibition. He participated in the Association for National Art Exhibitions and was a member of the board of the

Kunstforeningen Kunstforeningen ( English The Art Society), now officially called Gammel Strand after its address, is an exhibition space and non-profit membership organization located at Gammel Strand in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1825 to promote a ...

from 1902 to 1905 and from 1909 to 1911. He was twice awarded the academy's annual medal, now the

Eckersberg Medal The Eckersberg Medal (originally the ''Akademiets Aarsmedaille'' or Annual Academy Medal) is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. It is named after Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, known as the father of Danish painting. The ...

, in 1901 (for ''Interior'') and in 1908 (for ''Evening''), also being made a member of the academy assembly. In 1891 he won a gold medal in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. Holsøe was a friend of

Vilhelm Hammershøi Vilhelm Hammershøi (), often anglicised as Vilhelm Hammershoi (15 May 186413 February 1916), was a Danish painter. He is known for his poetic, subdued portraits and interiors. In 1905, Rainer Maria Rilke wrote of the artist, "Hammershøi is no ...

, whom he met at the Frie Studieskoler and who depicted him together with his brother

Svend Hammershøi Svend Hammershøi (10 August 1873 – 27 February 1948) was a Danish painter and ceramist.Sigurd Schultz: He is remembered principally for the classical pottery designs he contributed to the Royal Copenhagen (''Kongelige Porcelainsfabrik'') and to ...

, Jens Ferdinand Willumsen, Madsen and

Thorvald Bindesbøll Thorvald Bindesbøll (21 July 1846 – 27 August 1908) was a Denmark, Danish National romantic architect, sculptor and ornamental artist. He designed the Dragon Fountain, Copenhagen (''Dragespringvandet'') and is perhaps best known as the cre ...

in his ''Five Portraits''. He died in Asserbo, in

North Zealand North Zealand, also North Sealand (), refers to the northeastern part of the Danish island of Zealand. The Danish tourist authorities have recently introduced the term Danish Riviera to cover the area in view of its increasing importance for to ...

, and is buried in Vinderød churchyard. In 1894 he married Emilie Heise, who was his most frequent model; she died in 1930. On 21 October 1935, shortly before his death, he married Ingeborg Margrethe Knudsen.

Works

Holsøe's paintings include landscapes, still lifes and flowers, but like Hammershøi he primarily painted domestic interior scenes; they undoubtedly influenced each other, but it is impossible to know who first gravitated towards this subject. It was in general increasingly popular among Danish painters as the country became more industrial, with implications of refuge and restoration from professional life and the city. Holsøe's works have come to be overshadowed by Hammershøi's: his coloration is less subtle and although there are characteristically one or sometimes a small group of figures, Holsøe's work is less innovative and unemotional by comparison with Hammershøi's

expressionism Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

.Mikael Wivel, ''Dansk kunst i det 20. århundrede'', Copenhagen: Gyldendal, 2008,
p. 62
: " ammershøiwas far from the only one in this country who was painting Dutch-inspired interiors—his brother-in-law

Peter Ilsted Peter Ilsted (14 February 1861 – 16 April 1933) was a Danish printmaker and painter. He was most associated with domestic interior scenes. Biography Peter Vilhelm Ilsted was born at Sakskøbing in Guldborgsund, Denmark. He was the son of m ...

and his friend Carl Holsøe were likewise more than merely capable. But he was the only one to do it with fresh eyes." In his mastery of form and enjoyment of the beauty of things—characteristically high-ceilinged rooms with mahogany furniture—he has been compared to the Dutch masters. His paintings have been forged (with difficulty).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Holsoe, Carl 1863 births 1935 deaths Artists from Aarhus 19th-century Danish painters Danish male painters 20th-century Danish painters Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal 19th-century Danish male artists 20th-century Danish male artists